The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1887-01-12
?IClICTT'> CHARGE.
General t.exandcr's Article on the Battle
OF Gettysburg in January Century.

!, =
In the January number OF the Centur.
are articles on the third days fight a
Gettvsburg, by General H. j. Hunt an,
E. 2. Alexander. From the latfer's &C
count of Pickett's charge we quote g
follows: 'sAt exactly one o'clock by N,
watch the two signal guns were heard il
Quick succession. In another minute
every gun was at work. The enemy wa
not slow in coming back at us, and th'
grand roar Of nearly the whole artiller.
of both armies burst in on the silence
almost as suddenly as the full notes O.
an organ could fill a church.
The artillery Of Ewell's corps, how
ever, took only small part, l believe
in this, as they were too far awaE around
the town. Some of them might have
done good service from positions be
tween Hill and Ewcll, enfilading tho
batteries fighting us. The opportunity
to do that was the single advantage IL
our having the exterior line to compen
safe for it's disadvantages. But our line
was so far extended that all Of it was not
we'll studied, and the officers OF each
corps had no opportunity to examine
each o,har's ground for chances of co.
operative work.
''Tllc e1emy,s position seemed to have
broken oat with guns everywhere, and
from Round Top to Cemetery Hill was
blazing Ike volcano. The air seemed
full OF missiles from every direction.
The severity OF the fire may be illustrated
by the casualties in my own battalion
under Major Huger.
"Beicrc the cannonade opened | had
made up my mind to give Pickett the
order to advance within fifteen OF twenty
minutes after it began. But when I
looked at the full development of the
enemy's batteries, and knew that his III
fantry was generally protected from our
tire by stone walls and swells of the
ground, could not bring myself to give
the word. 1t seemed madness to launch
infantry into that fire, with neatly three
quarters of q mile to go in the midday
July sun. I let the fifteen minutes pass,
and twenty, and twenty-five, hoping
vainIy for something to turn up. Then
I wrote to Pickett: eff you are coming
at all you must come at ouce, or l can
not give you proper support; but the
enemys fire has not slackened at all; at
least eighteen guns are still firing from
the cemetery ITSELF Five minutes after
sending that message, the enemy's fire
suddenly began to slacken, and the guns
in the cemetery hmberea up and vacated
the position.
eve Confederates often dill such
things as that to save our ammunition
for use against infantry, but [ had never
before seen the Federals withdraw their
guns simply to save them up for the
infantry fight So said, Ii he does
not run fresh batteries in there in five
minutes, this is our fight. I looked
anxiously with my glass, and the five
minutes passed without a sign of life on
the deserted position, still swept by our
fire, and Uttered with dead men and
horses and fragments OF disabled carri
age. Then J wrote Pickett, urgently:
For Gods sake, come quick. The
eighteen guns are gone: come quick, or
my ammunition won't let me support
you properly
':1 afterwards heard from others what
took place with my first note to Pickett.
pickett took it to Longstreet. Long
street read it, and said nothing Pickett
said, General, shall I advance?' Long
street, knowing it had to be, but unwill-
ing to give the word, turned lis face
away. Pickett saluted and said, 4 am
going TO move forward, sir, galloped off
to his division and Immediately put it in
motion.
"Longstreet, leaving his staff, came
out alone to where was. It was then
about LAO 2. N. l explained the situa-
ton, feeling then more hopeful, but
afraid our artillery ammunition might
not hold out for al we would want.
Longstreet said, Stop Pickett, inmedi-
ately, and replcnish your ammunition.
l explained that it would take too long,
and the enemy would recover from the
effect our fire was then having, and We
had, moreover, very little to replenish
with. Longstreet said, 4 don't want to
make this attack. would stop it now
but tLat General Lee ordered it and ex-
poets it to go on. I don't see how it can
succeed.
Il listened but did not tlarc offer a
word. The battle was lost if VIC stopped.
Ammunition was far too low to try any
thing else, for we had been fighting
three dsys There was chance, and it
was not my part to Interfere. While
Longstreet was still speaking, Pickett's
division swept out of the wood and
showed the full length of its gray ranks
and shining bayonets, as grand a sight
as ever man looked on. Joining it on
the left, Pettigrew stretched farther than
l could see. General Dick Garnett, just
out OF the sick ambulance, and buttoned
up in an old blue overcoat, riding at the
head of his brigade, passed us and sa-
luted Longstreet. Garnett was IL warm
personal friend, and We had not met be-
fore for months. We had served on the
plains together before the war. l rode
with him short distance, and then we
wished each other luck and goodbye
which was our last.
"Then l rode down the line Of guns,
selecting such as lad enough ammuni-
ton to follow Pickett's advance, and
starting them as fast as possible. | got,
I think, fifteen or eighteen in a little
while, and went on with them. Mean
while, the infantry had no sooner de-
bouched on the plain than all the
enemy's line, which had been nearly
silent, broke out again with all its bat
teries. The eighteen guns were back in
the cemetery, and storm of shells be-
gan bursting over and among our III
fantry. All of our guns, silent as the